chestnut - Pineywoods

Later edit:

To be flexible, I could go with Postoak Savannah and Oak Prairie, also.

Have you had any luck with deertexas.com and huntingpages.com and/or would you subscribe again to their services?

Thanks.. Timbo

Well I guess I haven't really had any "luck" since I am still without a lease. However, I have seen several on both sites that interested me enough to call about. If I were to only do one of the two I would choose deertexas.com. I believe the guy that runs it is also a member of this forum. Maybe he could incorporate some type of "matchmaker" service into his site.

i am in the hill country

I live in Austin area. Not interested in any one part of the state over the other.

I guess like most folks I like some place close, so that would put me in Hill country. But, if the lease was 2 or 3 hours away, and had the right set up, then that is where I'll be.

I'd disagree that the thread is going nowhere.

Several other forum members have posted good information on what they are looking for. And even you have gotten this thread pointed in the right direction.

Just got back in town, so I'll look for my old rule book tomorrow.

Wife is sick, so I'm taking care of the kiddos by myself tonight.

Post deleted by Hopedale

2000 acres between 33 hunters thats 60 acres a person. I truly believe that a lease should have a min. of around 120 acres a person. To many people not enough land will run a area down. I think the only way that your idea could work is for you to lease the land make your rules and see who signs up. You get 20 people trying to make a list of rules and no one would ever agree

I'm intertested in Hill Country, South Texas, Piney Woods, and Oak Praire in that order.

Here's a link to the region map that I believe Chestnut is referring to.

TPWD Region Map

Personally, I'm interested in the Eastern half of the Cross Timbers region, no further west than Abilene.

Thanks ThreePeppers, I should have thought of that. Here's another map for your edification. I hope it doesn't confuse more than it helps.

Texas Ecological Regions

Summery:

More people in this area of the forum are looking for a lease then there are leases available.

Would it not make sense for everyone to work together in finding a lease everyone could join in on? Yes it does based on the comment, “having no luck finding a lease the last two years’.”

Form the club before we have the area to lease by matching like minded hunters. Besides matching similar views, ie family oriented, deer management, the other criteria is probably geographic area wanting to hunt and budget.

Everyone that in viewing this post is interested, so we need to form what the club rules would be. At that point, groups will begin to form.

Once the groups are formed, a budget can be established. And once the budget is set a search for a lease can begin.

It seems to me by getting a large group together, it be possible to get an area that only large corporations compete for.

Problem that has been pointed out is not everybody wants the same thing in a lease, and not everyone can play nice together which is why you, the forum member, needs to post what you are looking for in a lease and where. This is how we will separate our selves and can begin forming clubs.

I’ve gone through all the post pasted comments that IMO, where good comments and things to consider. I will make my best effort to organize these in some fashion that makes sense.

If I took your comment out of context, then I ask for your forgiveness now.

If you blast me, it’s on you. I’m apologizing in advance.

Again, I am making an effort to organize the thoughts and comments into some fashion. My ultimate goal in starting this thread is finding a lease with people to enjoy it with.

Here is what I’ve gotten from all the post, the heading are not in any particular order, but, I believe if you answer each, it will aid all of us in forming the group we each fit in:


Means and Methods:

Some folks want a lease to be archery only

As for methods of taking game, we had bow, black powder, and firearm of your choice.


Herd Management:


Some worried about trying to manage the place.

I would look real strongly at making opening weekend does only or requiring everyone on the lease to kill a doe, before trying for a buck.

I believe in herd management to a certain extent

9 yr old knows that seeing any deer is more important than seeing a trophy buck

The place I am looking for now is one where I can tag out on does but if I see a buck I can kill it.


Acres:

Take my situation. I am looking for a place between 80 and 200 acres for 2 to 4 people.

We had approximately 2000 acres.

A great set up for the budget hunter. 6 guys 600 acres, no running put in

I truly believe that a lease should have a min. of around 120 acres a person.

4) Enough land so that the hunter could fill all his tags allowed in that county


Restrictions:

I don't want a place in any county with antler restrictions. I want a place where the land owner does not care what I shoot as long as it is legal.

6. Definitely not in an AR county.

6) Not in an AR county and each shooter decides what he wants to shoot as long as it is within the bounds of the number allowed.


Guest:

I want to be able to take a guest if I want to and I expect that guest to use their tag and I do not want a place where I have to "burn" one of my tags if a guest shoots a deer.

And a place that I could go on all year long to scout or take my kids

I also want a place where any guest I bring can shoot any deer they see, not just a doe.

looking for a family environment,

If I am going to be paying for the place, and I want a guest to come and hunt with me, I want them to be able to shoot anything they want to, and I don't want it to count against my tags, simply because there is no shortage of deer over most of the state, and on most if not all leases, not nearly enough deer are shot every season.

You can have guest all year, only exception is whitetail season. Then you can bring one at a time and they can only shoot a doe ,but it does burn one of your tags.


Club rules:

made the rules prior to inviting members.

dispute on distance; must be addressed before new stand goes in.

kept changing the rules and adding people.

You could not leave your blind untill 10am.

3. Everyone will contribute and help with the set up/maintenance/filling/purchasing of feed and establishing food plots.

1. Drinking = As long as it is done responsibly I have no problem with it what so ever

1) No drinking on the property


Geographic Location:


consider; depending on where the land is located there might be either smaller land owners adjacent or even small towns adjacent to the lease

Distance, well of course I'd love something close to home, but if the place has somewhere to stay, then driving 2 - 3 hours doesn't look to bad.

3 hrs to the west of Fort Worth.

Use this link to look at what region you prefer:

TPWD Region Map

(Let's stick with TPWD; they post the season dates)


Members:


the lease I used to belong to had 33 members



Stands & Food Plots:


Each member could have two perminate stands. Inside the tree line you couldn't set up within 100 yards of another hunter, and in an open field it was 200 yards of another hunter.

You could put out deer feeders and food plots, but it wasn't required.

Will you give each member a specific compartment or allow first-come; first-serve for that particular day?

I would be willing to bring two blinds and two feeders but am not looking to spend $1000 per year on protein.

5. Nothing portable unless a hunter is going to be on the place by themselves that day. All stands and tri-pods, whatever, would be built the same, and there would be none of this,

If a person wants to set a tri-pod in a particular location, that is fine, BUT, if they are not going to be there that weekend to hunt it, it is open to anyone that does show up.

3) No baiting or food plots

5) Emphasis on portable stands or hunting from chairs

Every body hunts thier own blind,feeder and foodplot. This is you get out what you put in


Lease Uses:


The lease was open year round, but its primary use was deer hunting

focus would be a place I could hunt all season long, with the method of my choice. And a place that I could go on all year long to scout or take my kids

2. Year round access to ALL hunting and hopefully Fishing.


2) Year round access but emphasis just on deer hunting


Lease Camp:


We had a loggers building as the camp. Half was for cold storage and deer cleaning. The other half included two bathrooms, kitchen, dinning\tv room, and sleeping quarters

would prefer a year round lease with loding of some sort.

A great set up for the budget hunter. 6 guys 600 acres, no running water no electric. Bring out your own camper leave it set up year round. You can have guest all year, only exception is whitetail season.


Budget:


Only one person has stated their budget; it was $2500; a $1000 for food plot\herd management with the rest going to the lease for dues.























.

Hopedale - Sounds like we might be able to work together to get this thing up and running. PM me your e-mail address and I'll send you a spreadsheet that I have made up.

Good work, Hopedale.

Seems like everybody agrees on wanting a year-round lease -- and nothing else!

I think 120 acres per person is good for much of the eastern half of the state. In the hill country, probably half that would be fine because of the deer density there.

My budget would be about $1200/year, $10 per acre.

I could be somewhat flexible on most things, which I think is going to be necessary to get any groups going.

Here is how I broken down the catogries and in the order that was important to me:

Club rules:

Safety first

Establish club board; President, treasure, etc.

Establish rules once groups have been formed.

What I liked in old club:

Disputes were handled by club board

No changing of the rules without club member vote.

You may leave your stand at anytime, but must not interfere with another club member’s hunt directly. So if you leave on a 4-wheeler on the main road back to camp, you are indirectly interfering, so you are ok. You didn’t go riding through everyone’s area, while they were hunting.

Two mandatory work days; set in enough time to adjust schedule. If you couldn’t make one, you had the second.

Drinking was aloud, but you needed to be responsibly and respectful of other hunters. No parting at 2:00 a.m. while folks are trying to rest.


Means and Methods:

I want to be able to use any legal method I choose, ie, bow, black powder, and firearm of my choice.


Restrictions:

It does not matter to me if I am in an area with antler restrictions, but would prefer to hunt where there are no antler restrictions.



Geographic Location:

Area 4, Hill Country would be my first preference.
Area 5, Post Oak Savana would be my second.
Area 3, Cross Timbers would be my final choice

I’d like something close to a small town, real small.

No more than 3 hours away from Austin.





Members:

the lease I used to belong to had 33 members; it was a total of 2480 acres. This equated to 75 per hunter.

I am not apposed to limiting the number of members, but the more members, the bigger the lease needs to be.

Guest:

I am all about bring guest, but needs to be a limit on how many times the same guest can come during deer season.

Need to establish a guest fee.

No more then one guest at a time.

I’d like a place where guest can shoot what they see, but, again, the land needs to tell us what type of harvesting is going to be done. With that said, it may be only bucks for guest, but it may be shoot what they see. Don’t know.

No guest first two weeks of rifle deer season.

Family members are not to be considered guest, and can come when ever you are at the lease. So, if you have two or more children, you can bring them, but they are your responsibility.


Acres:

I say 75 to 100 per hunter.

Herd Management:

I’d like to have herd management to an extent; I want the land to tell us what needs to be done. If the first year, we need to thin out the does and spikes so be it. However, if the land has a low population and needs to be built up, then I have no problem with only hunting for bucks. What I don’t like is for the club to choose what I am going to shoot.



Stands & Food Plots:

Each member could put out two perminate stands; you can only hunt on your stand, unless you have worked something out with another member.

You can use mobile stands, but you can not set up on someone else area. And you can not leave a mobile stand out. Must be reclaimed before you leave the area.

Food plots and feeders are your choice; not a requirement. If you don’t have the money or time; you shouldn’t be excluded from joining the lease.

Lease Uses:

It should have year round access.

The emphasis should be on deer hunting.

If it has stock tanks, I would like to duck hunt after deer season.

If I get a 4-wheeler, I want to be able to ride around on the lease, again, after deer season.

Looking for someplace I can enjoy all year long, and if I want to bring my kids I can.


Lease Camp:

Where I used to hunt, we had a loggers building as the camp. Half was for cold storage and deer cleaning. The other half included two bathrooms, kitchen, dinning\tv room, and sleeping quarters.

I know that this may be hard to come by, but I would want to put up some sort of building; could look at a Morgan Storage Building. Set it up for sleeping, cooking, cleaning deer etc.

My Dad just got a portable storage building for $3k and would work great for a camp. Just an idea.

Budget:

For me, I’d like a lease with annual dues not to exceed $1,000 to $1,200. Think with just starting a lease, it may cost a little more to get set up, all depends on what we want.

Agree with you; there is not going to be the perfect place. Everyone will need to pick and choose what's important and given in a little on few issues. Otherwise, you need to continue on your own to find a lease.

Hopedale.

Sign me up. I'm looking for almost exactly the same thing.

Some questions about your list:

1) Did you mean people can drink while on-stand, etc.? I could stretch to drinking after guns are put away in the evening -- but that's as far as I would go.

2) I hunt from a climbing-tree stand. I envisioned the lease being cut into equal size sections. I would have a section where I could move my stand around as long as I didn't intrude on another stand just outside my area -- unless no one was in that stand that day. I can't see how people could place stands without having preassigned areas. There'd be disputes over most-valued sites.

3) You said you wouldn't want the members telling you what you could shoot, but would be for managing -- just shooting bucks or does as necessary. Isn't that contradictory?

Hopedale - Just sent you an e-mail.

I would love to get in on something like this and I agree that the land should dictate the deer harvesting. I also would like the management to be a balance so kids would not have to wait for a true Trophy before being able to harvest a deer.
I also would put a limit on the use of 4 wheelers, even after the season. Nothing seems to drive the deer off a property like 4 wheelers running around all the time. This is the main reason I have not joined some of the clubs I have been invited to join. I am not saying you cant use them for hunting but recreational riding of them puts strain on the roads and the wildlife.

My budget would be $2000 and must be within 3 hours of Houston.

Sounds like something I'd like. Budget is $1500. Keep me in the loop and let me know if there's anything I can do.

I am interested also. Piney woods or hill country, family/guest friendly. Thanks.

If you got a land owner willing to work with you on approving the land than tpwd's mld program would be great if you got over 1000 acres. Then you could divide up the bucks and does between all the hunters and all the guess work of buck and doe harvest would not be guess work or argued

I dont think that deer move off the land due to traffic I just think deer learn to pattern people a little more than we give credit. Also you should have a section of land where humans are not allowed under no condition in the center of your lease. This will also help them feel better about traffic. I do agree with 4 wheelers going all over but roads are find (farmers and ranchers due it all day)